Volatile
by dantekiriyu
Summary: [ZuTara] Sometimes, it takes little to be caught between holding on to the one you love, or losing them forever.


"I don't like it."

"Oh, come on Zuko. It was an accident."

"I don't like it one bit."

The exiled prince growled as he flung a discarded piece of clothing onto the floor, furious over the incident that had taken place just a few moments ago. If it was not enough that he had to endure that idiot's constant flirting with Katara, the last thing he expected to find was him sprawled on top of his girlfriend in a very compromising position.

What was he to think? That it was all an accident? And that it was not some part of an underhanded plan in trying to get Katara alone?

"Gaahhhhh!"

He yelled in frustration. He was so close to losing it that if Katara had not been there to pull him away from the scene, Jet would have to be spoon-fed the next morning onwards. It took all he could from storming right out of his assigned room and settling the score that was long overdue between him and Jet. That guy never knew how to admit defeat.

"Zuko, please! Calm down!"

At the sound of Katara's frightened voice, he was pulled back to the present and realized that the mirror hanging on the wall had been smashed to pieces by his fist. A distorted image of himself was reflected on what was left of its surface. He pulled his hand back from the broken glass and it came away bloodied. In his fit of rage, he had failed to notice how he had scared her into the other end of the room, away from him.

"I'm sorry."

He mumbled under his breath, mentally cursing himself for never learning how to control his bad temper. Azula may have been the one who had manifested this inner monster in him, but he only had himself to blame for not being able to tame the beast. And right now, he was about to feel the consequences of his own failure.

He stepped forward to close the distance between himself and the one person whom he cared the most. But his heart sank when she drew herself away from his touch, clearly rejecting his gesture of reconciliation. He let his hands fall back to his sides, dejectedly.

"Katara, I –"

His words were interrupted by her raised hand.

"No more," she spoke, head hung low while her eyes fixed its gaze onto the floor. "I don't know if I can do it anymore."

"What are you saying?"

He inquired, heart beating rapidly against his chest. He knew the hidden meaning in what she was trying to convey but he refused to acknowledge it. It was not going to happen, he would never allow it.

"Zuko, I don't think I can do this anymore… with you."

He could hear the tremble in her voice, struggling to maintain a brave front as she spoke the next words, "I'm tired of your jealous rages. I'm tired of your volatile temper. I'm tired of it all."

"Katara, I didn't mean to do it. I – You know how it is like for me. I can't control it!"

Zuko raised his voice in frustration. It was not that he was angry at her words because he knew it was all truth. But he was mostly angry at himself for not being able to discipline himself enough in suppressing his rage. And he was about to lose everything because of it.

"You can," she interjected. "You just… didn't try."

There was no sadness in her voice anymore. It had been replaced by discontent, which was an emotion he rarely saw in her. For all the times he had known her, she was always a picture of kindness and compassion. Even when the team had been in the toughest of situations against the Fire Nation army, she was the voice of calm and positivity. Always putting plans into action and bolstering the team's morale when all hope had seemed lost. It was no exaggeration if he said that without her, the team would have never gotten this far. Aang may be the one who held the physical prowess and edge that their team needed in combat, but Katara was the indispensable driving force that brought everyone together no matter the differences.

And now, he hated himself for bringing out this side of Katara. The Katara before him was now a foreign presence which he was unable to read. Those eyes which once only held affection, was now stilled into a hard gaze.

Despite knowing that his touch was the last thing she wanted, he went against his instincts and reached out for her. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders which now seemed so fragile to him. He noticed that she had remained still in his embrace, but he was not about to let it shake him. Between them, they both knew that he was the weaker one. He needed the feel of their bodies coming into contact more than her and also, the sense of reassurance that came with it. The reassurance that even in his darkest of times, there would still be someone there for him to hold, no matter how the other feels.

He blinked back his tears away, not wanting to let the feeling of helplessness sink him even further. He knew that the next few words that escape his lips would bring a turning point into their relationship. If she still wants to walk out of his life, then he knew it would be forever.

He buried his face into her hair, filling himself with her scent as though it was his last. If he had to let go of her, he wanted to do so with the feel of her permanently lingering in his memory.

"Katara… I admit I am far from being the perfect man," Zuko spoke; his voice solemn and full of remorse. "I have hurt you more often than I ever should and I know that an apology would never make up for all those times that I had done you wrong…"

He felt her shift a bit in his arms. She had lifted a hand to brush away a single tear that had escaped and settled it back down to her side, not once did her skin came into contact with his. He felt his heart sank deeper but he pushed on, not wanting to leave his heartfelt words left unspoken.

"But Katara… I – don't think I can look forward to a new day without having you by my side. You breathed life back into me when I thought everything was lost. You never left my side ever since then, always pulling me back to the right track when I veer too far away from grace."

Zuko tightened his grip on her, balling his fists into the fabric of her clothing. It felt as though if he let go of her now, she would disappear for good.

"Just… just give me one last chance to redeem myself to you," his voice cracked at the last syllable as he pleaded with the woman he could not let go of. "I could never love another. Not now nor in the lives that may come after."

At this point of time, he was on the verge of falling apart. But the hands that he felt pressed against his back, reeled him back into the present and he saw how the woman in his arms was now sobbing into his chest. He could feel her tears dampening his skin and it was then, that he vowed to change the part of him which almost destroyed the only good thing left in his life.

"You know I feel the same way," she spoke in between her weeping. "There is no one else I want to be with."

Before he could respond to her words, she pulled back a little from their embrace and said, "But you must learn to trust me when I tell you the truth. I know you and Jet can never see eye to eye but when it comes to my affections, never question it. I know my heart better than anyone else."

The man nodded in response and pressed his lips lightly on her forehead before looking down into her cobalt blue eyes which had always reminded him of the ocean. Deep and never ending, just like the devotion she had for him and vice versa.

"I know better now… But if that two face son of a-"

"Zuko!"

She glared at him in annoyance, lips pursed into a firm line. He rephrased his words, not wanting to anger her a second time.

"But if that conniving little f-," He cleared his throat, trying to compose himself again. "If Jet ever tries anything funny with you again, he is out of the team. I will make Aang see reason myself if he has anything to say about it."

Katara pondered a while over his words and a sly smile came to her face. Zuko was not sure if it was something to not be worried about, but he waited for her to voice out the thought that was in her mind.

"I won't argue with that… but for now, I would like you to do something for me."

Not liking where this was going, Zuko raised an eyebrow and nodded his head hesitantly.

"I want you to go out now and make amends with Jet."

"WHAT?!" Zuko yelped in disbelief. "You can't be serious right?"

"Now now, what did we just say about controlling your temper," she reminded him in a placating tone. "The first step to finding inner peace is to reconcile with those who always put you on edge. What better way than to start with Jet, right?"

Zuko groaned in response and refused to budge. It took all of Katara's weight and strength to push him towards the door and direct him to the start of his anger management journey.

"Come on big boy, you'd have to start now if you don't want this process to drag on to your next lives. I'm not sure I could handle that if we are to be together for all eternity."

Zuko smirked at her biting wit before turning around to plant his lips onto hers, effectively giving a light tug on her lower lip before pulling away. It left her speechless and secretly, he loved the way her cheeks flushed in embarrassment. He relished the fact that it was him who had caused the slight swell that was starting to form on her lips.

Katara was his and he was hers.

Everything was how it should be and all was good in the world.

* * *

Author's Note:

This was supposed to be a light-hearted story but somehow it got a bit emotional along the way...

I guess I just had some angst to let out.


End file.
